CALGARY - Several hundred people were at a Calgary church Thursday for a private memorial service for a former reality TV contestant who killed himself after being accused of murdering his ex-wife.
Ryan Jenkins committed suicide in a B.C. motel room in August, days after the mutilated body of model Jasmine Fiore was found in a Los Angeles area dumpster.
Many who entered the service wore suits and black dresses and one woman carried an armful of yellow flowers.
A woman who would only identify herself as security said about 300 people attended the ceremony, which was billed as a celebration of Jenkins' life.
The ceremony was closed to reporters. Several people stopped to scold a cluster of media standing on the sidewalk outside the church, while others used cellphones and cameras to snap pictures of the television cameras.
Gossip website TMZ was the first media outlet to report news of the memorial. The international news media followed every aspect of the murder investigation rabidly from the moment Jenkins was accused in Fiore's death.
The two were married in a Las Vegas wedding in March only days after meeting. Police have said they had a volatile relationship and had cheated on each other.
Fiore's naked body was found stuffed in a suitcase in the dumpster on Aug. 15. Her teeth and fingers had been removed, and she was identified by the serial number on her breast implants.
Jenkins reported her missing hours later, telling a West Hollywood sheriff's deputy that his wife had disappeared after running errands and that he hadn't seen her since the night before.
Police believe Jenkins then fled to Canada by taking his speed boat to Point Roberts, Wash., and then walking across the border.
The boat was discovered Aug. 19, the day California authorities named Jenkins a person of interest in Fiore's murder. Several days later, his body was found hanging from a clothes rack in the Vancouver-area motel.
U.S. police say Jenkins is still the only suspect in Fiore's slaying, and they're currently examining the contents of the computer that was found in the motel room for further clues.
Published reports suggest Jenkins' father, Calgary architect Dan Jenkins, believes his son may be innocent and has hired a private detective to look for more evidence in California.
